Evolution of an industry

By |  January 11, 2016

d_constantinoOn the 10th floor of our offices on Cleveland’s East Ninth St. – also known as Rock & Roll Blvd. – is a large bookcase that holds several bound volumes. Dating back to 1917, each volume contains a year’s worth of Pit & Quarry issues, and in them is essentially a recorded history of the aggregates industry in North America for the past 100 years. The 1916 issues are missing, as well as a few others, but most all of it is there, right at our fingertips.

So in this, our 100th anniversary year, we’ve decided to share it, through our Pit & Quarry Evolution Series.

It begins on page 18 of this issue, and each month of 2016 it will detail the many decades worth of changes experienced by one sector of our industry, such as this month’s topic – drilling and blasting. Other areas of focus in the coming months will include loading and hauling, trade shows, crushing, safety and much more.

And along with your June 2016 issue, you will receive our anniversary supplement, taking a look back at 100 years of aggregates-industry history and equipment innovation. The supplement will also include full-page historic overviews of some of the industry’s leading equipment suppliers.

In addition to the thousand-plus back issues of Pit & Quarry at the North Coast Media offices, we have a large photo archive, with most of the images dating to the 1950s and 1960s. One promotional ad in a 1950s issue bragged, “Our seven editors visit 1,000 quarries each year.” Given the size of the photo archive, all of them must have had cameras.

Speaking of changes and evolution, it’s not just our industry that is evolving, but Pit & Quarry, as well. In March we will unveil a redesign of our look and content. Our next 100 years begins in this year, and we will continue to bring you the latest in cutting-edge equipment and technology news, adding to our already extensive archive so future generations can look back.

Looking Back

While we’re on the subject of history, a little about our Looking Back section at the end of every issue. You have told us this is one of your favorites parts of the magazine, and we will continue bringing it to you with our redesign in March. And, please remember, if you have a quality scan of an old photo taken at a North American aggregates operation, I encourage you to email me, along with details of the photo, to be considered for publication.

About the Author:

Darren Constantino is an editor of Pit & Quarry magazine. He can be reached at dconstantino@northcoastmedia.net.

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